Question for anyone who has run a car on the sand: how much ground clearance is enough? The grille shell on my car hangs a little low and I'm wondering if it's going to become a plow?
If you are referring to a beach, then a couple inches should be fine. All beach race pictures I've seen are very flat and smooth. Getting to the beachfront might be the issue.
Yep, it will make a huge difference whether or not the sand is wet and smooth, or dry and fluffy. I was out in the Imperial Sand Dunes once during and after a freak rain storm in August. The top 1/2" of the sand turned into a very smooth concrete like cap on top of the sand immediately following the rain. You could go anywhere, with anything, it was absolutely amazing. 12 hrs. later, the sand had dried out again, and you needed lots of power again to attack the dune faces straight up.
Beach, yeah. It looks smooth, but especially at the starting line, things get pretty torn up. Very few cars seem to start without spinning… I’m just figuring the front tires will sink in a little, and it wouldn’t take a whole lot of ruts, grooves etc to eat up the 5-1/2” clearance I currently have.
In this case, the old 'scrub law' makes sense. "No part of the car shall ride lower than the bottom of the highest rim" Ergo, as most sand racers run oversize rear tires? No plow.
@boneyard they move the start line periodically to help with the trenching of the racecars and bikes. The most difficult area is the pits, the soft sand up there is tough to navigate. Have fun, it's a wicked good time!
I’ve been there a couple times as a spectator, this will be the first time running there. I checked earlier, the car has just under 6” at the bottom of the grille shell. I feel like I’ll probably need to put a leaf or two in both springs just to be on the safe side.
Does any of you folks who race on the sand use a skid plate at the front with an upcurved lip to "ski" over the ridges?
Is it a rule that you have to run those narrow tires? I would think on sand I'd want the widest tires I can find, less chance of digging in.
You’re more or less required to, yeah. We could probably go up a size or two and be within the rules, but not enough to make a big difference. From: https://www.theraceofgentlemen.com/entry “Wheels & Tires: No 15 inch wheels. 16, 17 & 18 inch only. No widening of wheels, stock only. No aggressive knobby or paddle tires. No wood T wheels, no stock A wheels.”
Ya, it would probly be wise to get it up a bit up front, even then stay off the brakes in the soft stuff and no sharp turns at any speed. back in the day we drove all kinds of vehicles on the beaches here. even lost one to the tide. Shit now you cant even walk a dog on the beach [I do anyway]
I live at the beach, and during striper season when we drive on the beach, we lower the air pressure to make a wider profile.
If your tires have a directional tread pattern, flip them around and run them backwards. It adds a surprising amount of traction in the sand.
Having known a bunch of guys that have raced there I might add a leaf or two as well. The other thing to look at, is to try and make sure that the clutch and flywheel area is completely sealed up, all covers on. Every year, there is at least one guy, (usually 2 or 3) that ends up hitting a soft spot in the pits or on the starting line and ends up scooping a bunch of sand into the bellhousing area and packing the clutch with sand. Just makes for a nightmare of slipping clutchs and burning up clutch disks.
Another good thing to have in the cockpit, a small wisp broom to brush the sand off places its not welcome.
Another good point. I’m already planning for there to be sand coming out of every nook and cranny of the thing for the rest of my life…
Big rhing to worry about is sand in your carbs. Seriously. When the guy in front of you rooster tails your carbs full because hes stuck in line you'll remember my advice. I was ill prepared for that last year. I'll be on the beach with my new car thus year and won't make that mistake again
See pic above, running a full hood for that reason. My buddies and I spectated twice and that was one of the things we noted from the sidelines.
Back in the day, a lot of dirt track racers used to cover the air cleaner with a nylon, kept the fine dirt from getting through the filter. Might help with the sand?
Bonneville racers, even on the bikes, talk about the big job to get the salt out of the nooks and crannies. I imagine beach racing is about the same.
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